The Surprising Health Benefits of Eating Your Own Placenta

The thought of consuming something that’s slipped out of one’s body will probably make most cringe, but there’s a growing trend that finds women eating their own placenta shortly after giving birth. Better known as placentophagy, almost all mammals engage in this act, and for good reason: The placenta contains all sorts of nutrients and hormones that a postpartum mother needs to recover and to nourish her baby after birth, including iron, vitamin B12, oxytocin, prolactin, prostaglandins and endorphins. Celebrities such as January Jones have given the practice a try, and now Inhabitat editor-in-chief Jill Fehrenbacher shares her placenta eating story. Click ahead for her piece, “I Ate My Placenta and It was Great!”.